Bright, brave Boks denied at the death in Marseille
A rousing 14-man fightback by the Springboks fell agonizingly short as France ended a run of seven successive defeats by the Boks with a 30-26 (halftime 16-10) victory at the Stade Velodrome in Marseille on Saturday night.

Late change for Boks before physical French Test
Springbok captain Siya Kolisi and SA Rugby Director of Rugby Rassie Erasmus said physicality and sticking to their structures would be vital when they line up against France in Marseille on Saturday in their second Castle Lager Outgoing Tour Test, while the Boks were forced to make a late change after Jasper Wiese had been withdrawn from the squad.

Stick disappointed with SA ‘A’ result but proud of the players’ fight
South Africa ‘A’ coach Mzwandile Stick and captain Thomas du Toit were bitterly disappointed after the team’s defeat against Munster at Pairc Ui Chaoimh in Cork on Thursday night, in the first of their two mid-week matches on the year-end tour.

Springbok Women’s Sevens camp ends on high note for Dazel
Two training matches against Belgium on Friday to conclude a week-long camp left interim Springbok Women’s Sevens coach Renfred Dazel impressed and satisfied with the impact the stint at Stellenbosch Academy of Sport had on the squad, which included seven players that were involved for the first time.

South Africa 'A' canned in Cork
South Africa 'A' dropped a disappointing 28-14 result to Munster in the opening match of their tour at Pairc Ui Chaoimh in Cork on Thursday night, leaking four tries in the first hour of the match.

De Klerk relishing starting chance against France
Springbok scrumhalf Faf de Klerk was delighted to be handed the No 9 jersey for Saturday’s Castle Lager Outgoing Tour clash against France at Stade Velodrome in Marseille and said he would continue to put in the hard yards to stay in the mix at scrumhalf, with a number of players pushing each other for national selection in the position.

French starting team unchanged for Bok Test
France coach Fabien Galthie has named an unchanged starting team for Saturday’s Test against the Springboks in Marseille, opting to stick with the same 15 players that started in their one-point victory over Australia last weekend.

Du Toit on France clash: “There is pressure on both teams”
The Springboks are expecting a tough onslaught from France in their Castle Lager Outgoing Tour match at Stade Velodrome in Marseille on Saturday, but said they were ready for the challenge.

SA ‘A’ told to “knock down the Bok door” against Munster
Tempting as it may be, playing as individuals against Munster will not serve South Africa ‘A’ and they know a proper team effort will go much further in impressing the national selectors with an eye of breaking into the Springbok squad.

Blitzboks determined to regain ascendancy
The Springbok Sevens squad are very aware that they have disappointed their supporters over the last month or so and are determined to make them proud again, come the next two HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series tournaments in Dubai and Cape Town early next month, Blitzbok skipper Siviwe Soyizwapi said on Wednesday.